Chapter 74

Pei Ji’an cleared his throat. The old lady was sharp as a tack. Before he could speak, she continued, “I’ll take Xiao Huai to help Xiao Zheng pack. You two hurry. If Xia Xia can’t suck it out, son-in-law will help. There is nothing to be embarrassed about between husband and wife.”

After Aunt Wu finished speaking, she took Xiao Huai and left in a hurry.

This left a stunned Lu Nong with the whimpering baby and her seemingly unbothered father.

Lu Nong couldn’t help but admire Pei Ji’an. After Aunt Wu left, he lost the last bit of awkwardness and focused entirely on Lu Nong.

“……”

Lu Nong turned her back to Pei Ji’an, unfastening her clothing. Pei Xia began to suck vigorously. As the saying goes, she was using all her strength, which showed just how powerful that instinct could be. However, Lu Nong felt a little pain from the sucking, and Pei Xia couldn’t suck anything out after sucking for a long time.

It seemed Aunt Wu was right; she needed Pei Ji’an’s help.

Lu Nong shifted her body and tugged at Pei Ji’an’s sleeve, looking pitiful as she said, “I’m hungry, and Xia Xia is too.”

Pei Ji’an smiled gently, his voice low and pleasant. He stood up, took the lunch box on the table, and handed it to Lu Nong, then went to make milk powder for Pei Xia. During the two days that Lu Nong was comatose, Pei Xia had been drinking milk powder.

Lu Nong rinsed her mouth with warm water from the room before opening the food container to eat.

The hospital meal consisted of two dishes and a soup: stir-fried cabbage with meat and scrambled eggs with chives, plus spinach soup and two soft steamed buns.

Given the living standards at that time, the patient’s meal was quite decent, even if there was no meat or salt in the stir-fried cabbage and no chives in the eggs. But the two fluffy steamed buns were sweet and soft, and after two days without food, Lu Nong managed to eat an entire bun despite the tasteless dishes.

While Lu Nong was eating, Pei Ji’an was busy feeding Pei Xia and soothing her to sleep, his actions graceful and proficient. Lu Nong watched in awe.

Once both the adult and baby finished eating, Pei Ji’an placed the sleeping Pei Xia back beside Lu Nong and poured her a glass of warm water. “Drink some water.”

Feeling revitalized after eating, Lu Nong was eager to go home and asked Pei Ji’an, “When are we going home? I feel so dirty.”

Pei Ji’an replied, “There’s no rush. You just woke up. Let’s wait for the doctor to check you, and if everything looks good, we can go home tomorrow.”

Before long, Pei Zheng returned with Aunt Wu, carrying Xiao Huai. Xiao Huai ran to the bedside to see his little sister, but being so short, he couldn’t reach her and hurriedly turned to pull his brother, shouting, “Sister, sister.”

Pei Zheng, feeling jealous, said, “Slow down. What’s so attractive about that ugly little monkey?”

“Haha,” Lu Nong overheard Pei Zheng’s words and coldly laughed. “Pei Xiaozheng, who are you calling ugly?”

Pei Ji’an lightly kicked Pei Zheng from behind. “Stop talking nonsense.”

It’s over, it’s over, Pei Zheng shouted in his heart. This little monkey has just been born and the old man’s heart is already biased. By the time she can speak and compete for favor, will there still be room for the two brothers in the Pei family?

Pei Zheng sighed and lifted Xiao Huai, holding him up to the bedside. “Look, look. From now on, you’re no longer the youngest in our family. You’re the second child, so you’re not as precious anymore.”

Lu Nong: “…”

“What are you mumbling about?” Lu Nong glared at Pei Zheng. “I warn you, don’t call your sister ugly again, and don’t say anything weird to Xiao Huai. We need to maintain family harmony, or else… hmph.”

Pei Zheng was still jealous of the little monkey and said in a sarcastic tone: “Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, the third child is the most beautiful. The third child is the most beautiful in our family. The second child and I can’t compare to her, okay?”

“Hey, you’re getting bold. Do you want me to hit you?” Lu Nong raised her hand to scare Pei Zheng.

Pei Zheng glanced at Lu Nong’s hand, then extended his own to compare, sincerely saying, “I really don’t believe that.”

Lu Nong felt a lump in her throat. She had suffered a loss in her emotional state, but once she fully recovered, she would definitely make this brat beg for mercy.

“Then, do you think I am qualified enough for you to trust me?” Pei Ji’an’s low voice sounded behind Pei Zheng.

Pei Zheng: “…”

Life was becoming unbearable! In the past, whenever he and Lu Nong quarreled, Old Pei would never interfere. Now that there was the little monkey, Old Pei had changed his principles entirely.

He was clearly favoring his daughter, who was precious to him and would not allow anyone to speak ill of her. Meanwhile, the two older sons were treated like grass. Pei Zheng bit his handkerchief in frustration.

Regardless of Pei Zheng’s internal drama, Huaihuai couldn’t take his eyes off his little sister, causing Pei Zheng to feel even more jealous.

The next day, after the doctor checked Lu Nong and confirmed everything was fine, the family packed up and returned home.

As soon as they stepped inside, Lu Nong rushed toward the bathroom, but Aunt Wu quickly blocked her. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“I’m going to take a shower. Please don’t stop me. I feel so dirty,” Lu Nong replied.

“You kid,” Aunt Wu said disapprovingly, “how can you take a bath during the confinement period? Be obedient and wait until you’re done with the confinement period before taking a bath. And by the way, I haven’t even asked you yet—has Xia Xia had any breast milk?”

Lu Nong: “…”

“Well, you’ve eaten, but it’s still blocked. You should try it. Don’t be disobedient. If you don’t want son-in-law to help you, I’ll have to do it myself. You choose.” Aunt Wu said, raising her hands in exasperation.

Lu Nong felt her scalp tingle at the thought. If Aunt Wu really came to help her, it would be incredibly awkward.

“I get it! I’ll handle it tonight. Please, just let me be,” Lu Nong said, desperately covering her head.

At that moment, Pei Zheng reluctantly entered the room, holding his little sister, with Huaihuai trailing behind.

Pei Ji’an had returned to the army.

When Aunt Wu saw how Pei Zheng was holding the baby, she frowned and said, “Oh dear, Xiao Zheng, that’s not how you hold your sister. It’s uncomfortable for her. You should hold her like this. Yes, that’s right. Now, hurry and take her upstairs.”

Pei Zheng: “…”

“What are you standing around for? You should hurry back to your room,” Aunt Wu said, waving her hand at Lu Nong.

Clearly, everything was being arranged for them.

That evening, when Pei Ji’an came home, Lu Nong had already put her daughter to sleep. She waved at Pei Ji’an, and when he came closer, she whispered in his ear, “I want to take a shower, but Godmother won’t let me. You have to help me.”

Pei Ji’an swallowed hard and asked quietly, “Why won’t Godmother let you?”

Lu Nong put her hands on her hips. “You should say, ‘Okay, I’ll help you,’ instead of asking questions.”

“Is that so?” Pei Ji’an smiled slightly at her.

Lu Nong nodded earnestly. “Yes, that’s how it is.”

“Alright then,” Pei Ji’an agreed.

Feeling like a thief, Lu Nong carefully opened the door, glanced around to ensure no one was in the bathroom, and beckoned Pei Ji’an to stay close. “It’s safe. Just stand here and guard the door while I shower.”

Pei Ji’an gently patted Lu Nong on the head. “Go ahead.”

Lu Nong clicked her tongue in annoyance. “Don’t pat my head. It’s oily.”

With that, she slipped into the bathroom and started running the water.

Lu Nong understood that Aunt Wu didn’t want her to take a shower out of fear she might catch a chill. However, in the sweltering summer, not showering would make anyone feel uncomfortable.

She shut the windows tightly to trap the steam inside, reasoning that once the temperature rose, it would be okay to shower.

After a refreshing wash, she heard a knock on the door. “Cough, Nong Nong, are you done? Hurry up, the water will get cold.”

Lu Nong wrapped her hair and opened the door. “I’m done. What’s wrong? Godmother didn’t notice, did she?”

“What do you think?” Aunt Wu’s voice came from the side.

Lu Nong felt a wave of dread wash over her. “…”

Lu Nong smiled flatteringly, “Godmother, listen to me, I just feel disgusted by my dirty clothes. Don’t worry, I didn’t catch a chill. I feel perfectly fine.”

Aunt Wu ignored her and turned to Pei Ji’an. “Son-in-law, Nong Nong is ignorant. Why are you indulging her? A woman in confinement has to be careful. If she doesn’t take care of herself now, it will affect her health for the rest of her life. She especially shouldn’t wash her hair or take showers.”

Pei Ji’an rarely felt guilty but glanced at the giggling Lu Nong and rubbed his nose. “You’re right. This time it was my mistake, and there won’t be a next time.”

Aunt Wu took the opportunity to say, “My dear! Why are you still standing there? Go back to your room. You need to dry your hair before sleeping. Do you understand?”

“Okay, okay, I understand.” Lu Nong rushed back to her bedroom in a hurry, and Pei Ji’an nodded at Aunt Wu, grabbing a towel from the bathroom before heading into the bedroom as well.

Aunt Wu shook her head. “These kids are always troublesome. They never listen to their elders and will regret it in the end.”

With her wet hair still dripping, Lu Nong turned to go back to the bathroom to grab a clean towel, only to find Pei Ji’an walking in with a towel in his hand.

She reached out to take it, but Pei Ji’an didn’t hand it over. Instead, he took her hand and guided her to the bed, sitting behind her as he gently dried her hair.

It felt surprisingly nice. Lu Nong relaxed completely, leaning against Pei Ji’an for support. Drops of water from her hair fell onto his clothes, soaking him, but she felt completely at ease.

After about twenty minutes, as Lu Nong began to drift off, Pei Ji’an said, “All done.” She immediately turned over and fell asleep. Just three minutes into her nap, she recalled Aunt Wu’s earlier words: “If you don’t want the son-in-law to help you, then I have to do it myself…”

Startled, Lu Nong shot up from the bed.

Pei Ji’an: “…What’s wrong? Aren’t you sleepy?”

“…”

With a sullen expression, Lu Nong mumbled, “You have to help me… xxx.”

“What?” Pei Ji’an strained to hear, repeating the question.

“I said,” Lu Nong took a deep breath, “You have to help me… get rid of… the blockage.”

Pei Ji’an still didn’t catch the last word, but he understood what she meant.

“Okay.” His voice was a bit dry.

The next day, Pei Xia finally had breast milk to drink. Pei Ji’an resumed his usual demeanor and went back to work, relieving Lu Nong from Aunt Wu’s incessant nagging. Aunt Wu no longer had to worry about little Xia not having milk.

Everyone had a bright future ahead, and all were happy.

The most unhappy in the family was Pei Zheng. Pei Ji’an knew that Pei Zheng disliked Pei Xia, so he ordered him to change and wash Pei Xia’s diapers every day after school.

After Pei Zheng returned home, Lu Nong would usually go downstairs to help Aunt Wu or do yoga to regain her figure.

One day, Pei Zheng brought his friends to visit Pei Xia, who welcomed her brother with a messy diaper.

Pei Zheng wished he didn’t have a nose. As he changed the diaper, he complained to Xiao Huai beside him, “I can’t take it anymore. If you had smelled this bad as a baby, I wouldn’t have liked you at all.”

Shen Jiming carefully observed Pei Xia’s features and, after changing the diaper, held her in his arms, speaking with unprecedented gentleness. “Xiao Xia is not ugly at all; she just hasn’t grown up yet.”

Pei Zheng rolled his eyes. “Another one fooled by the little one. I think instead of calling her a little monkey, we should call her a little Daji.”

“Come on, don’t be so ungrateful. Xiao Xia is so well-behaved. Look, she always smiles at you. She didn’t cry even when you treated her so badly. You should be happy to have a sister like her.” Zhang Kaiping threw an apple to Pei Zheng.

Pei Zheng caught the apple but didn’t eat it. Instead, he asked, “Really?”

Zhang Kaiping: “It couldn’t be more true. My brothers and sisters were all the crybabies when they were little.”

Pei Zheng laughed, snatched Pei Xia from Shen Jiming’s arms, and looked into her eyes for a moment before saying, “Tsk, nope, still ugly.”

Shen Jiming/Zhang Kaiping/Jiang Yu: “…”

Lu Nong’s confinement period passed quickly, which also meant that the date for the family to move south was approaching.

Pei Zheng had been changing Pei Xia’s diapers for over a month, and he felt like he constantly smelled like poop. “Hmph, finally, I don’t have to change little Daji’s diapers anymore.”

However, that night, he sneakily took “little Daji” back to his room to sleep, inviting his little brother along for a farewell gathering.

Three days before departure, Lu Nong packed everything they needed. Since they didn’t know when they would return, they planned to take most of their belongings, if not everything.

Fortunately, they were taking a military truck, so they could pack as much luggage as they wanted.

On the day of departure, Pei Zheng held Xia Xia tightly in his arms and talked to Lu Nong, saying, “Sister Nong Nong, why don’t you leave Xiao Huai and Xia Xia at home? I’ll help you take care of them. It’s not appropriate for them to travel such a long distance with you, right?”

Lu Nong: “…”

Pei Ji’an couldn’t stand Pei Zheng’s slowness. After kicking Pei Zheng in the lower back in the hospital, he reached out and took Xiao Xia from his arms and kicked him again, “Why are you slowing down? Study hard and don’t get into trouble. I’ll send someone to pick you up during the New Year. Do you understand?”

Pei Ji’an spoke firmly, and Pei Zheng stood up straight, loudly replying, “Yes, I promise to complete the task.”

Huaihuai was reluctant to leave his brother and clung to his pants. Aunt Wu, showing no mercy, picked him up and closed the car door, not allowing him to get out.

The family got into the truck one by one, and as the vehicle drove away, Pei Zheng stood there for a long time.